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Healthy Inspirations: Swine Flu

Update Swine Flu Spring 2010

Swine flu has not disappeared. If you have not received your vaccination there is plenty of it for everyone.
Those most at risk for serious complications are infants,children, and young adults, pregnant women,and anyone with a chronic medical condition.

The spring is historically a time when the Flu returns to schools and other gathering places. You need to be aware that there will be an increased risk of exposure to Swine Flu (H1N1) for the next several weeks.

The intelligent healthy decision is to ask your health care professional about getting vaccinated. Children under the age of 10 need to have a second vaccination of H1N1. Take your children for their second dose if they have not received it yet.

Update: Swine Flu September 15, 2009

Many facts have been updated regarding Swine Flu. This virus did not go away during the summer months like other flu viruses do. What that means is that people across the United States have been getting the Swine Flu (now called H1N1)throughout the summer. The good news is that this means that the virus has not changed much as was feared to begin with.
Now that schools are back in session we will likely see more people becoming infected.
All people should begin to be vaccinated with the seasonal flu vaccine which is available now.
There is a Swine Flu vaccine which has been developed. The federal government bought all the available vaccine so it can be available for only the cost of administration of the vaccine.It is believed that there will be plenty of vaccine for everyone, HOWEVER because the manufacturers can only produce so much at one time those people at highest risk for having severe effects from it will be vaccinated first.

Those groups are:
1. Children and young adults aged 24 and under.
2. Pregnant women.
3.Those who suffer from Diabetes, Asthma, Chronic breathing problems, Heart Disease, liver disease, kidney disease.
4.Caretakers of children less than 6 months. (because the infants can not be immunized)
5. Anyone whose immune system is compromised.
6. Health Care Workers (because they need to stay healthy to take care of the sick)
The vaccine will begin to be available some time in October in small amounts. Please allow those people who are most at risk to be vaccinated first. There is every indication that there will be plenty of vaccine for all Americans.
Like many vaccines, this one uses eggs as part of the process, so if you have a severe allergy to eggs you should not get this vaccine.

Should you be worried about Swine Flu? President Obama put it very well when he said, "There is certainly cause for concern, but not for alarm."

The local media has been fanning this flame by inflating the facts with innuendo- leaving our minds to fill in information from our frightened imagination.

First of all, the flu virus is spread through close contact. Hand washing is your best defense. Remember this is a time of many viruses. Swine flu is one of many in your area.

As with all illnesses anyone with
1.a fever (temperature over 100.5 degrees F) and
2. symptoms of sore throat
3. achy body
4. cough
5. vomiting, or
6. diarrhea
should stay home until 24 hours after the symptoms have gone. That means children should not go to school, daycare, or babysitters; adults should not go to work, the grocery store, church, or a neighbor's.

This is not new information. These are common sense practices to follow every day of every year.
1.Sneeze and cough into your elbow and away from other people.
2.Use disposable tissue and throw it away immediately.
3.Then wash your hands for 20 seconds with warm water and soap- any soap. Rub your hands together, wash between your fingers and under your fingernails. 20 seconds is the same as singing the alphabet song or Happy Birthday twice.
4.Dry your hands well.
For real information on the statistics click on Swine Flu
Look at last year's flu statistics.

During , 2007-2008:
1. 39,827 people were positive for influenza viruses.
2. 49 states reported widespread activity
3. Patient visits to U.S. providers for influenza-like illness exceeded national baseline levels of 2.2% and peaked at 6.0%
4. The percentage of deaths peaked at 9.1%
5. 83 deaths associated with confirmed influenza infections occurred among children. These deaths were reported from 33 states (Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin)

Healthy Inspiration: Choose the common sense practices listed above as your daily routine and the possibility of dying from any virus is drastically reduced.

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